


Prophecy's Child

by TMar



Series: Prophecy Unveiled [2]
Category: Highlander: The Series
Genre: F/M, Gen, Mary Sue
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-29
Updated: 2018-12-29
Packaged: 2019-09-29 21:29:02
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 13,666
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17211290
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TMar/pseuds/TMar
Summary: Richie's daughter Amy Palmer, the prophesied "Immortal seed", finds him and discovers her destiny.





	Prophecy's Child

**Author's Note:**

> I wrote this in June 1995. It was published the fanzine "Richie Forever".

Prophecy's Child

She won't recover from her losses,  
She's not chosen this path, but she watches who it crosses  
Maybe move to the right, maybe move to the left  
So we can all see her pain she wears  
like a banner on her chest  
And we all say it's sad, and we think it's a shame  
And she's called to our attention, but we do not call her name  
The girl with the weight of the world in her hands

Richie Ryan was still in the bike workshop two hours after it had closed,  
but he wasn't tired... or finished. When he had formed his own racing team,  
it would have been easy for him to rent a cushy office downtown and only  
pitch up at the track for practices and races, but that wasn't him. Despite  
having been in the racing business for... what, 18 years already? - he still  
needed to be where the action was. And being on the pulse of things also  
kept him fresh. Fresh for racing, and fresh for... well, for the Game.

The Game. He hated it, but it was something you got no choice in. He was  
Immortal, and he didn't want to become a priest, so holy ground was out.  
Richie had never liked chickening out of anything, *had* never chickened out  
of anything. Never. And since killing Daniel Cole all those years ago, he'd  
felt capable of taking part in the Game.

Daniel Cole. Richie remembered everything about him, about... *her*. He  
opened his desk and took out a very old, faded picture. "Kathryn," he said,  
looking at it.

The picture showed a young woman with short blonde hair holding a very, very  
tiny baby, and smiling. Richie stared at the picture, remembering Kathryn.  
He'd only known her for a year - exactly a year - before Daniel Cole had  
killed her, but she had been a defining influence in his life. Kathryn, who  
had been the woman of legend. Kathryn, born in a subway train during an  
eclipse, foretold for thousands of years by ancient Immortals. Kathryn, the  
woman destined to preserve the Immortal seed. Kathryn, who had loved him,  
and whom he had loved. Kathryn, who had borne Amy, and died.

Richie took out another photograph. It was of a child, aged six, wearing a  
bathing suit and building a sandcastle on a beach. On the back of the  
picture it said, "Amy's third holiday. Miami Beach, Florida." He put it  
aside, took out the next one. This one showed Amy, now in her teens, wearing  
a beautiful evening gown of emerald silk that matched her eyes. This one  
said, "Senior Prom. Won best couple with friend."

Not a day went by that Richie didn't think about his daughter. But that was  
all he did - think about her. He was sure that Duncan managed to visit, but  
he'd never asked, and Duncan, he was sure, knew enough not to tell him. He  
had pictures of all of Amy's milestone years. And... this year Amy would  
turn 19. Another birthday, another picture to add to his collection. But  
never to see her.

Richie had tried, at first. Her adoptive parents had promised he could visit,  
but after two visits he had found it so painful he had not gone back. Let  
her have a normal life, the life she couldn't have had if he'd kept her. Let  
her live without the threat of Immortals trying to kill her to get at her  
father. Let her have that for as long as possible. Richie knew it wouldn't  
last forever, because... she *was* the child of the legend. The only child  
who would ever be born to an Immortal. No other Immortal would ever   
have one, and Richie would never have any more, because Kathryn was   
gone. She'd been gone for almost 19 years. And he still missed her, and   
loved her. And loved their daughter.

Richie heard a noise in the workshop, and got up, immediately reaching for  
his sword. It didn't feel as if an Immortal was near, but there was  
something... some sort of sense that there was someone there. He hid the  
sword behind his back and stepped out of the office. "Who's there?"

A young woman walked out of the shadows, the same young woman in the  
pictures. Strawberry blonde hair, green eyes, her mother's facial shape. Amy.

Richie wanted to yell her name, rush forward and hug her, but... Her being  
here could be a coincidence. Richie got his facial muscles under control.  
After all, she couldn't be here looking for her father... could she? "May I  
help you?"

"I'm looking for... Richard Ryan." She said it with some uncertainty, as if  
she was struggling to ask the question.

"You found him," said Richie.

"You're him?"

"That's right."

Amy's face scrunched up in confusion. "But... you can't be. You're too young,  
you... You must be his son, then."

It would be the easy way out, Richie knew, to say he was his own son. Duncan  
had sometimes used that one, but he'd never been comfortable with it. And  
this was Richie's daughter. Lying about who he was would only make it more  
difficult later on.

"No," said Richie.

"I... I'm sorry," mumbled Amy. "There must be some mistake." She turned to  
leave.

"Amy! Wait!"

She turned. "How did..."

"Because I am Richie Ryan, and it isn't a mistake."

Amy stared at him. "You can't possibly be my father. You're too young. You  
look younger than me."

"Looks can be deceiving," said Richie. "I really am your father."

"I..." Amy looked ready to faint.

"Come on," he said, taking her arm. "Come in here and sit down."

When he had settled Amy in the chair, Richie sat down on the edge of his  
desk. "I suppose you've got some questions."

"Yeah, I... For years I asked my mother - " She hesitated, but Richie's  
expression didn't change. He had gotten used to thinking of the Palmers as  
Amy's parents. It had made things easier. "I asked her why. She didn't know,  
all she'd say was that you loved me. That my birth mother had loved me. And  
that she was dead. I knew that friend of theirs, Duncan, knew more than he  
was saying, but when I'd ask him, he'd always say it was time to go. He'd  
never answer me. So I decided that when I turned 18 I'd find you."

"You turned 18 eight months ago," said Richie. "What took so long?"

She started at that. He knew her birthday, so it had to be true. She answered  
him: "Getting up the courage. But my parents did know your address, or... I think  
they asked Duncan, and he told them."

"Yeah."

Amy looked into his eyes then, reminding Richie more than ever of Kathryn.  
He remembered the desperate look on her face when she'd thought Daniel Cole  
would catch her. And the look when Daniel Cole had pulled her over the  
railing, and into the sea. Richie never wanted to remember that, but it  
always came to him. The night he lost the woman that he had loved.

"Why?" asked Amy. "Why did you give me away?"

Richie ran a hand through his hair. "I couldn't look after you by myself.  
And... there were other reasons."

"Why do you look like you're 18?"

"Because, biologically, I am. It's a part of those other reasons, but if I  
tell you, your life won't ever be the same. If I tell you, I'll have to tell  
you everything. Me, your mother, Duncan. Everything."

"I have to know."

"Okay, but let's go to my place."

"All right."

***

Since having his own racing team and his own money, Richie had been able to  
afford a much larger, comfier apartment. It was no coincidence that the  
decor seemed to harken back to the antique store and Tessa. Richie had been  
his happiest there, and having his apartment look like the store made him  
feel at home. A striking piece of sculpture stood in the living room. He'd  
acquired it at an auction a few years back. It was Tessa's, of course. At  
first he'd been nervous over how Duncan would react, but the highlander had  
understood. Tessa had been Richie's friend and... mother confessor, almost.  
Richie had loved Tessa almost as much as Duncan had.

"It's beautiful," said Amy, looking around the apartment.

"Thanks."

"This is an amazing piece. Who's it by?"

"Tessa Noel."

"The artist who was gunned down all those years ago? Her stuff is worth a  
fortune."

"Yeah." Richie didn't like to think of that night. He preferred to remember  
Tessa, full of life, on Duncan's arm. "Sit down, please."

Amy sat, and Richie began his story. He told her about Immortals, about what  
it took to become Immortal, about the Game, about... about the legend.

"You're the child who was foretold in that legend. Kathryn - your mother -  
was the woman destined to preserve the Immortal seed. Why she chose me,   
I don't know. All I know is, she loved me, and I loved her."

"But why did you give me away? Why?"

"I told you, I couldn't look after you. It was too dangerous for you to stay  
with me. I wanted you to have a normal life, not a life on the move, trying  
to stay away from other Immortals, flying to Paris and back... I loved you  
too much to do that to you."

"Do you have a picture of her?"

"Yeah." Richie went into the bedroom and brought out a box. He rummaged  
amongst pictures of Amy until he found what he was looking for. The picture  
showed Richie, wearing a hospital gown, holding Amy and standing next to  
Kathryn, who was lying in a hospital bed. "This is the day you were born."

Amy stared at the picture. "This is my mother?" And she started to cry,  
holding the photograph to herself.

Richie dug for another photo. He didn't have many, but he finally came up  
with one which Kathryn had given him of herself. This picture showed Kathryn  
with red hair, standing in front of Notre Dame. "Here."

"Were you two in Paris?"

"No, that was taken when your mother escaped Cole by going to Marcus  
Constantine."

"Who was he?"

"He's the one who sent Kathryn to Duncan, who told us about the legend. That  
legend has almost died out; the older Immortals never told the young ones.  
They wanted to find Kathryn first. But... she found me."

Amy wiped the tears away with the back of her hand. "How old *are* you?"

"I'm 39," said Richie.

His daughter smiled. "You don't look it. No way."

"Well, I always look on the bright side. I'll never be old, or sick. I raced here   
under a different identity for nine years before people started asking questions.   
I was in more accidents than I can count, but aside from the one in Paris I was   
always fine. And being Immortal helped me make a success of my life."

"I..." Amy faltered, swallowed. "I... can you... can I ask... would you hold me?"

Richie sat down next to his daughter and hugged her with all his might. It  
felt good. He was finally able to be happy about her. Kathryn had not died  
in vain because here was their beautiful daughter. Kathryn had wanted her, had  
loved her. And Richie had loved her every minute of every day since her  
birth, despite not ever seeing her.

Then Amy jerked her head up suddenly, pulling away. "What was that?"

"What?"

"I... I saw..." She stopped.

"Saw what?"

"Nothing. Must have been imagining things." But that wasn't true: she had  
seen Richie, handing a towel to a blonde woman around a shower curtain. She  
knew it was her mother. It was a moment from the past.

Richie knew Amy was lying. When he had held her, he had remembered that day,  
with Kathryn, in the hotel room. He *knew*, without knowing how he knew,  
that Amy had looked into his mind and seen it, too. "Tell me what you saw."  
He took her hand.

Amy looked into his eyes, seeing that he knew that she had looked into his  
mind. "I saw... you were handing a towel to my mother around a shower  
curtain."

"That's a memory. It happened long before you were born."

"'Now I know how the guy from The Fugitive felt.'" said Amy, quoting what  
her mother had said to Richie all those years ago. "You were running away  
from someone... Daniel Cole. You were helping her run away."

"Yeah."

"'Maybe the legend wasn't for Immortals to choose...'"

"'Maybe I get to,'" finished Richie.

"I can see it!" yelled Amy. "In my head, I can hear and see it all! She said  
that, to you. She chose you!"

"Yeah." Richie pulled his hand away. He didn't want her seeing anything more.  
Some things were meant to remain private.

"I... " Amy began, but Richie suddenly looked up, distracted. Another  
Immortal. "Sh! Stay here." Richie retrieved his sword and went to the door,  
opening it cautiously.

"Hi," said Duncan MacLeod, strolling in.

"Mac."

"We need to talk about the..." Duncan trailed off at seeing Amy there.  
"Amy?"

"Hello, Duncan." Amy's heart skipped a beat to see Duncan MacLeod here. She  
had always had a crush on him.

"What are you doing here?" he was asking.

"Finding out things about my parents. Things you would never tell me."

"It wasn't my place to tell you."

"I know."

"Mac!" Richie interrupted. "She saw into my mind! That must be what Marcus  
thought... something to do with the Gathering. When I touched her, she read  
what I was remembering."

"What did you see?" Duncan asked Amy.

"I saw my father handing a towel to my mother."

"It was one of the days when we were running from Cole," added Richie. "She  
even told me what Kathryn said."

"Is this a gift of the legend?"

"I don't know, Mac. Let's see if it works on you. Give her your hand."

Duncan gave her his hand.

"I see... you jumped into a boat on a river... there's a woman... a tour guide...   
you're arguing over something... the year that Notre Dame was built."

Richie looked at Duncan, puzzled; Duncan nodded. "That was Tessa."

"Tessa Noel?"

Duncan looked away. "Yeah."

Suddenly Amy gasped. "Wait!"

She was in a shadowy... it looked like the inside of a warehouse. Duncan  
and... someone she didn't know, but he felt... felt? Powerful. "There can be  
only one," he said. Weapons clashed.

Duncan pulled his hand away. "What was that?"

"That was... I was in a warehouse, I think. Blue walls. Windows painted  
black. You were fighting someone... I think he had red hair. He was very  
tall. He had a... I think it was a battleaxe of some sort."

Duncan frowned. "I've never fought anywhere like that. Or anyone like that.  
What happened?"

"I didn't see it. You pulled your hand away. I think... I think I saw the  
future."

Duncan and Richie stared at each other. Maybe this was Amy's part in the  
Gathering. Duncan looked back at Amy. "Did you see who won?"

"No. But I know who did."

"Well?" asked Duncan when she didn't continue.

"You did."

"How do you know?"

"I don't know, I... I just do."

Duncan and Richie spent a long time speaking to Amy, asking her questions.  
Up until that day she had never, ever had any sorts of psychic experiences.  
And now she'd had three within the space of a few hours.

"It must be because you two have finally met," said Duncan. "You triggered  
something."

"Maybe she's the one who knows who'll win the Prize," mused Richie.  
"Otherwise, what was this all for?"

Duncan turned to Amy. "Do you know?"

"No. And I'm tired. I'd like to go home now."

"All right." Richie got up and went outside with her to her car. She turned  
as she opened the door, and looked into his eyes again, with a fierce  
intensity. "You do love me."

"Of course I love you," responded Richie. "I loved you since before you were  
born."

And Richie's daughter put her arms around him and hugged him tightly.

***Part 2***

Driving home, Amy Palmer felt as if a weight had been lifted from her  
shoulders. There was something new in her life... in her, something that  
responded to Immortals. Something triggered by finally meeting her father.  
She could look into Immortal minds. She could see what would happen. She  
didn't know if that would be the case with all Immortals, or just those she  
was close to, but she hoped she'd find out. She'd have to meet those other  
Immortals, first, but she felt sure that Duncan or her father - her  
*father*! - would introduce her. And she'd find out what she had to do with  
the Gathering.

"Amy?" called her mother when she walked in the house.

"Yeah, Mom."

Her mother came and faced her in the hallway. "So? Did you find him?"

"Yeah."

"And?"

"He told me about... everything. My mother. Himself. I know he loves me. He's  
always loved me."

Her mother had always known this day would come, and yet she felt... odd. As  
if she had to compete for her daughter's affections. And yet, she had known  
Richie Ryan all those years ago. Whatever his reasons had been, he had loved  
his baby daughter very much. She had understood why he hadn't been able to  
keep Amy, but she had been secretly relieved when he'd called and told her  
that he wasn't coming for any more visits. And for almost 19 years, she had  
her husband had had Amy all to themselves. "Yeah," she finally replied. "I  
always knew that. Are you going to see him again?"

"Yes." At the hurt look which appeared in her mother's eyes, Amy amended,  
"It won't mean I love you any less, I... I just want to get to know my  
father... and I want him to know me."

"I understand." Or, Amy's mother tried to. Which was all that could be  
expected under the circumstances.

Amy went to her room, to get some studying done. But she couldn't; all she  
could think of was the things she had learnt. And especially the things she  
had seen in Richie and Duncan's minds. She had to find out exactly what was  
going on.

***

Richie turned up at the store a few days later with Diana, his latest  
girlfriend. Despite his age, Richie had still not found his soul-mate. Or,  
perhaps he had, and she had been taken away from him. Duncan would often  
look at Richie with a girl and think they made a good couple. But Richie  
would always end the relationship when it got too serious. Just as he,  
Duncan MacLeod, didn't want another Tessa, so Richie didn't want another  
Kathryn on his conscience. But looking at Richie and Diana together, Duncan  
thought that maybe this time would be different. This girl was tenacious,  
spunky and demanding. She reminded Duncan of Felicia Martins, but of course  
he'd never tell Richie that.

"Hey, Mac."

"Hey, Rich. Diana."

"Hi," replied Diana, smiling her dynamite smile. She was a model, just out  
of her teens. Richie always took up with girls just out of their teens, but  
Duncan could hardly blame him. If he took up with women his own age, it  
would look pretty odd.

"You know, Mac, I miss the dojo," said Richie. He always said that, but he  
always meant it.

"Yeah, me too. It had character. Still, this place is growing on me."

"Slowly," added Richie.

"Yeah. So, what can I do for you?"

"Would you excuse us?" Richie said to Diana, who went to look at the antique  
jewellery. She always did; Richie suspected that one day she'd demand one of  
the pieces she was always admiring. He'd probably buy it for her, too. But  
he'd ask Mac for a discount, of course.

"Amy called me last night. She says... she wants to meet other Immortals. To  
see if what she experienced with the two of us was a coincidence, or if she  
has that intuition with all Immortals."

Duncan nodded. "Logical, I guess. I'll call Amanda."

"Get her to bring Michelle," said Richie.

"Sorry. Michelle's in Africa. Amanda has a new student now. Lindsay...  
somebody."

"Well, get her to bring her." Richie wanted to make sure his daughter got  
all the help he could provide.

Duncan made the call.

"Amanda will be here tomorrow. Bring Amy around at about seven."

"Okay." Richie went to the front of the store, where Diana was still staring  
longingly at an exquisite necklace. "Let's go."

"Where are we going, Richie? If you say another art show I'll kill myself!"

"We couldn't have that, could we? How about a movie?"

The pair continued talking as they left the store.

When Amy arrived the next night, there were four Immortals present. She knew  
it before she had even entered the apartment. She could feel each one in a  
strange way.

The Immortals didn't appear to feel her arriving, though, because Duncan  
acted surprised that she was early.

After Duncan had introduced everyone, they got down to business. First,  
Richie. He remembered... well, he didn't have a lot of control over his  
memories. "You're... you're at a fashion show... there's... Duncan is there,  
and a blonde... oh, it's Tessa... She says they found something nice for  
her... Duncan... 'You found something, I didn't.'" Richie nodded. "Yeah.  
That was in Paris over 20 years ago."

Suddenly Amy turned to Duncan. "You killed him," she said. "He wasn't in my  
father's memory, but I see it! Gabriel Piton! You cut off his head!"

"Yeah." Then, "How do you know this?"

"I don't know, I... just do."

Duncan took Amy's hand. "What do you see now?"

"You're... I think you're in a church... there are chairs scattered around...  
Darius!" Amy's head snapped up. "Then it blanked. You screamed his name."  
She let go of Duncan's hand. "Darius... a great general who could have  
conquered the world. Instead he chose to work for peace. Horton killed him...  
and you tried to kill Horton... near the graveyard, after... Lisa... after he killed   
her..." Amy looked shocked. "I'm not holding your hand, now, Duncan!  
Why do I know all this? Why can I see it so clearly?"

Duncan and Richie looked at each other, then at the other two Immortals. "I  
don't know," Duncan finally said.

"And it's not just that... do you know that there are two other Immortals in  
this city right now? One... he's... I think he's cooking... a chef, maybe...  
The other is chasing a suspect down... no, along a sidewalk."

"How do you know?" asked Richie and Duncan at the same time.

"I don't know!" Amy put her hands to her head. "I can see them, Dad!" she  
said to Richie, who couldn't believe what he'd heard. He had never thought  
she would ever call him that, but... there it was. "I can see them!" She  
turned to Amanda. "I don't need to touch you to see your memories. Stolen  
counterfeit plates for U.S. dollars. Some rock star... you're arguing with  
him over something... you're climbing to a high-wire... you..." Amy put her  
hands to her head again, and collapsed.

Richie rushed forward, but Duncan already had her in his arms. He'd watched  
her grow up, and come to care more and more for this daughter of his friend.  
Now she needed to rest, and regroup. He knew how tiring it must have been  
for her, finding all this out at once. "I think that's enough for one night," he   
said to Amanda and Lindsay. "She's just tired out."

"Yeah." Amanda and the other Immortal got up. "Well, let us know if you need  
us again." She said the last word pointedly to Duncan. "I will," MacLeod  
replied.

Amanda kissed Richie on the cheek before she went out. "Always great to see  
you, Richard."

Richie couldn't help but like Amanda. He often wished Duncan would stop  
dithering and get together with this woman, and at other times he wished  
Amanda would look in his direction. "You, too, Amanda."

When they were alone, Richie rushed back to his daughter, who was still  
unconscious in Duncan's arms. "Mac? Is she really okay?"

"Yeah. She just fainted. Too many memories at once, probably. Amanda IS 600  
years older than I am."

"Yeah. Well, I'd better call her folks. She can stay here, in the guest  
bedroom."

Duncan smiled. "You decorated it with her in mind, didn't you?"

Richie suddenly looked very serious. "She's my child, Mac. I know how that  
sounds, but it's true. I couldn't explain that to anybody, but I always  
wanted her. In some ways... I betrayed Kathryn, giving her up. Kathryn died  
to protect Amy. She wanted me to keep her. But I couldn't."

"I know." Duncan swung Amy up and took her into the guest bedroom.  
"Shouldn't you make that call?"

Richie called. "Mrs Palmer? Richie Ryan here. Er... Amy is going to be  
staying with me tonight. She's... rather tired."

Duncan came back out of the bedroom, to hear Richie pacifying the woman. "No,  
she isn't leaving home. No, she isn't coming to live with me, I promise.  
She's just tired, and since she fell asleep here, I thought..."

After a few more minutes of reassuring the woman that Amy was fine, that she  
wasn't trying to leave home, Richie put down the phone, looked at Duncan. "I  
don't suppose I can blame her, Mac. Amy comes to see me out of the blue, and  
almost right away she's staying over at my house."

Now it was Duncan's turn to look serious. "She's got a powerful gift there,  
Rich. If she can feel Immortals - and we can't feel her - she could have a  
significant influence on the Game. Especially if she can look into their  
minds and see the past. And even more so if she can see the future. She  
could predict our battles. I think that, in time, she will come to see who  
wins the Prize."

"I don't know if I want that for her."

"I wouldn't want it for her, either, but we might have no choice. She might  
be destined to do this, the same way her mother was."

"I should never have..." began Richie, but Duncan cut him off.

"You know you can't say that, Rich. It happened. Marcus told us the truth  
all those years ago: it *had* to happen."

"Well, I don't have to like it, Mac!"

"Yeah. I don't like it, either."

***Part 3***

When Amy awoke the next morning, at first she was confused over where she  
was. Then she remembered fainting after seeing a thousand years of  
memories... Amanda's memories. So, logically, she must still be at her biological  
father's place.

As if on cue, Richie opened the door carrying a plate and a cup of coffee.  
"I sensed you were awake." And he had. He wondered if that was just  
something that parents knew, or if it had to do with the legend.

Amy didn't seem to think his statement was odd. "Hi."

"Okay, I made this for you. It's... it's supposed to be scrambled eggs and  
toast. I have become a better cook, but only out of necessity." He grinned,  
and as he did so, Amy suddenly comprehended why her mother had fallen in  
love with him. Richie always looked on the bright side of things, and always  
had some witty remark to make. It must have calmed her mother a lot to be  
with someone who didn't look at the downside. "Thank you."

"Eat it and then say that." Richie handed her the plate, put the coffee on  
the bedside table, and sat down on the end of the bed. "What are we going to  
do about you, Amy? You will know who wins the Game. You already know where  
the Immortals are."

"Just..." She had been about to say, "Just in this city," but even as she  
said it, she knew she could feel Immortals much further away. "There are...  
there are so many!" she finally burst out. "They're... I could list them all  
for you, their names, their backgrounds, their likes and dislikes, their  
pasts... and who will fight and who will win."

"Who will win the Game? Can you see that?"

"Not yet... there are too many... But I know, somehow, that... that soon  
there will be less, and less... and then... Yes, I will eventually know.  
There's something else... something..." She tried to put it into words. "I  
can't see it yet."

"Marcus Constantine was right, then," Richie said. "He said everything had  
to happen this way."

"Even my mother dying?"

Richie looked down; he still didn't like to talk about that. He knew that  
Constantine had been right, but he still felt that if he had not fallen in  
love with Kathryn, if they had not had the baby, she might still be alive.

"Dad... even my mother?" Amy asked again.

Richie nodded. "Don't... don't call me that, okay?"

"Why not?"

"Because I like it. Because then you'd be calling me that all the time, and  
if we ever went out in public, you could slip up. We can't afford that."

"Okay. What would you like me to call you?"

"How about what everybody else calls me?"

"Richie?"

"Yeah."

"Okay... Richie." Amy clearly didn't like it, but she agreed because what  
her father had said made sense.

Richie got up off the bed. "Look, you eat and when you're done you can go  
home. Your mother was really worried."

"She doesn't like me seeing you."

"The story of my life," he smiled. "But, I know how she feels. I felt the  
same way when I let them adopt you."

Amy loved her adoptive parents very much, but that didn't stop her from  
feeling that she should never have been adopted. "You should have kept me.  
Because my life will never be the same. Being with you would have prepared  
me for it."

"You might have been killed."

"D... Richie, what if I'm Immortal? Like you?"

"The only way to find that out is for you to die, and I don't want to take  
that risk."

Amy nodded. She knew that Richie had done was he thought was best for her,  
and she appreciated it. But, she could still wish that things had been  
different.

Richie looked out of the window as she went to her car and drove off. As she  
did so, he saw another car pull away in the same direction and was  
momentarily filled with panic. He didn't want anybody to know about Amy, for  
the simple reason that it would put her life in danger. He told himself to  
calm down, that he was probably just being overprotective, that someone  
wasn't following Amy.

But someone was. Amy didn't notice, really, but when she searched her mind,  
her... field of perception for her father, she caught the thought: that  
someone could be following her. She kept an eye on her rearview mirrors, and,  
sure enough, noticed a car a little further back in the traffic. Whoever it  
was was being clever enough to stay back far enough not to be conspicuous. 

Richie had told her about the Watchers, and she assumed it was one of them.  
But what if it wasn't?

Amy suddenly decided that she couldn't go home. If it was someone from the  
renegades - the Hunters - then going home would give away where she lived.  
Amy knew this would worry and irritate her mother even more, but there was  
nothing that she could do about that. She turned the car around and drove  
back to her father's place, noting that the car following her was still doing so.

Richie looked upset when he answered the door. "What is it?" he asked. He  
had felt her returning, and knew that he must have been right about the car.

Amy rushed in, past him, beginning to explain. "You were worried when you  
saw a car..." She stopped. Sitting on the sofa was Diana. "Oh, I'm sorry, I..."

"Hi," said Diana, standing up and walking forward to greet her. She had a  
smile on her face, but she looked a little suspicious.

"Hi," replied Amy.

"Er..." began Richie. Not the best way to start off. "Diana, this is... a  
friend of mine, Amy Palmer. Amy, this is my girlfriend, Diana Wyatt." The  
two women nodded.

"Can you excuse us for a minute?" Richie asked his girlfriend, and went into  
the kitchen with Amy, who burst out, "You saw that car, and you were worried.  
Well, I noticed it. I was being followed. I'm scared, Da... Richie. I can't  
go home!"

"You can stay here, then. Because if they're following you, they must know  
about me."

Amy sighed. "All right."

"Should I phone your mother?"

"No. I'll do it. She isn't going to like it at all."

"I guess not." Richie sighed. "Diana and I were going to go for some lunch a  
bit later. You'll have to come."

"I really don't think that's necessary... Richie. I can stay here."

Richie knew that if it was the renegade Watchers, they would stop at nothing.  
"Amy, look. Those sons-of-bitches killed a great man in a church. Nothing  
means anything to them except killing Immortals. And if they know about you,  
they could want you to influence the Gathering. Because you *will* know the  
outcome."

"Okay." Amy sighed. "But I'm not tagging along on your date. I'll go over to  
Duncan's place. Okay?" She tried not to sound too eager to do just that.

Richie thought about it. If they'd observed Duncan visit, then they probably  
knew where he lived already. So perhaps the highlander's place was the best  
bet. "Okay."

They went back into the living room. Richie fished for his keys, since he  
actually did have a car now, as well as several bikes. "I'm quickly taking  
Amy over to Mac's place."

Diana looked confused, especially since Richie's daughter was stunning to  
look at. But she had learnt that, where Richie was concerned, questions  
sometimes didn't help. "All right. I'll... gee, I dunno...watch TV or  
something."

Richie winked at her, then ushered Amy out of the apartment.

Diana was just settling down on the couch with a video of some science  
fiction movie when she heard a scream. She rushed to the window, opened it  
and looked down. Richie was holding himself in front of Amy, and they were  
being confronted by two men with guns. "Richie!" Diana yelled, and he looked  
up.

"Don't call anyone!" he yelled at her.

All Diana could do was watch, as the men ignored her.

"We'll take the girl," said one.

"Over my dead body," replied Richie. The parent in him would never allow a  
child of his to be taken like this.

One of the men held up an axe. "If you want to go that far."

The other pointed the gun at Amy. "Or maybe over her dead body."

Amy disengaged herself from her father's grasp. "Dad. Sorry, Richie. I'll go  
with them."

"No! This is exactly what we were afraid of."

"They'll kill you. Or me, or both of us, if I don't go. Please."

Richie knew they had no choice, but he also knew what a weapon the Hunters  
would have now, in Amy. He stepped away from Amy.

"Good boy," said one of the Hunters.

Richie smiled a humourless smile. The man was younger than he was. "You harm  
one hair on her head -- "

"And you'll kill us? Yeah, we know. We aren't going to harm any hairs on her  
head."

A car screeched up, and the two men, with Amy between them, got into the car.  
As it sped off, Richie memorised the license number, but he knew that was  
probably futile. No doubt it would be a fake plate. He rushed upstairs to  
his apartment, to call Duncan.

"Richie, what's going on?"

"Not now, Diana. Mac! They've got Amy!"

Duncan arrived in less than ten minutes, a strong sense of urgency driving  
him. Not again. Tessa. Kathryn. So many. Not Amy, not if he had anything to  
do with it.

Richie had not been able to get Diana to leave, despite all his efforts.  
"I'm staying here until you damn well tell me what's going on. I'm sick of  
this evasiveness of yours."

Richie didn't think Diana could handle what he was, and he had always been  
careful to shield her from the truth. Now she was demanding to know, but  
she'd probably never believe it. Richie, who looked about 19, with a  
daughter who looked the same age? Never. So he just shrugged, replied,  
"Whatever," and waited for Duncan.

***

MacLeod tried to think. "Where would they take her?"

"I don't think it matters, Mac. It doesn't matter where she is, she knows  
where we all are. She can predict the outcome of any battles."

"What do you think they want with her?"

"If the Hunters want to get rid of us, the best way would be to watch a  
battle, then behead the winner."

The two Immortals stared at each other. "We have to find her, Mac. We can't  
let them use her."

Duncan looked at Richie. "We don't know anything about them. Where they'd  
take her, even who... " He stopped. "You know!"

"What?"

"Think, Richie. It was meeting you that triggered her... abilities. Maybe...  
it works in reverse. Maybe, if you opened yourself up... you could sense  
her."

"Yeah!" Richie stopped all movement, closed his eyes, waited for a sense of  
his child. "No, I..." Stopped. There was something... very faint. "You're  
right... she's out there somewhere... that way." He pointed in an easterly  
direction.

"Let's go," said Duncan.

"Wait!" yelled Diana. "Behead the winner? Abilities? Sensing people? What  
the hell is going on?"

Duncan and Richie looked at each other. "Not now," they both said, and  
rushed out of the door.

***

Amy sat in a very comfortable chair, faced by a tall, dark-haired man. "I  
want to know when the next Immortal battle is going to take place," he said.

"Go to hell," replied Amy.

"That's not helpful."

"No matter what I do or don't do, you'll kill Immortals. Kill me if you have  
to, but I'm not helping you."

"We can get to your father at any time."

"If I help you, he's dead anyway." Amy knew that, no matter what happened,  
she could not tell anyone *anything* about the Game, or the Prize.

The Watcher didn't look pleased. "Your father..." he began, but Amy was no  
longer listening. Her head had snapped up. There was an Immortal nearby. And  
it wasn't Richie. The Watcher was too busy concentrating on his rationale  
for what he was doing to notice, as Amy felt the Immortal get nearer and  
nearer. But she didn't say anything. Let the Immortal come in... maybe she'd  
be able to get away.

The door smashed open just then, and as the Watcher turned, a shot came from  
the door, killing him. The Immortal stood there holding a gun. Amy got up,  
backing away. "I'm not one of them. Please!"

"I know. I know who you are." He walked forward, grabbing her. "Let's go."

"Where?"

"I know about you. We're going to my place, and you are going to tell me  
what you would have told them."

"I wasn't going to..." began Amy, but he clamped his hand over her mouth and  
dragged her out.

"She's... she's moving, Mac," said Richie as the car screeched around a  
corner. "They're moving her... or someone else has her."

"Well, just tell me which way."

"Yeah. Turn left here."

Amy sat looking with defiance at the Immortal. "How did you know?"

"Easy, Ms Ryan. I've been keeping an eye on those watchers for ages.  
Listening to their conversations. I was going to kill them as soon as I knew  
all their plans... but I didn't count on you."

"My name's Amy Palmer," said Amy.

"Whatever. I heard them talking. You're the one foretold in the prophecy,  
the Immortal seed. And they said you know things. You know who'll win. I  
want you to help me."

"What, to win?"

"Yeah."

"I don't... I don't think I can influence Immortal battles. I only know who,  
and when. I don't think that knowledge is useful to anyone yet."

"Well, if you know where and when, I could get to the scene too."

"I thought there was a rule against fighting two to one."

"There's no rule against fighting the winner when they're weak from the  
Quickening."

"If you think I'm going to help you..."

"No, I don't think you're going to help me. Not willingly. But I can keep  
you here for a very long time, Ms Ryan. Palmer."

"Maybe," said Amy. She could feel her father and Duncan getting nearer.

***Part 4***

Richie and Duncan neared the place where Amy was. They couldn't sense  
another Immortal yet, so Duncan slowed the car. "Is she there?"

"Yeah."

"I don't want to get too close yet. Is there an Immortal with her?"

Richie nodded. "We're not close enough to feel him, but she can feel him. He  
wants her to help him in the Game."

"Can you communicate with her what we're going to do?"

"I dunno. Maybe. But Mac... this one's mine."

"Richie..."

"Mine, Duncan. She's my daughter." As Richie said it, Duncan knew that  
arguing wouldn't help. And, despite the fact that he wanted with all his  
heart to do this, he knew that it was Richie's fight. Richie hadn't been  
able to save the mother, but maybe he could save the daughter. "Is this  
about Kathryn?" Duncan asked, just to make sure.

"She died, Mac. I'm not going to let that happen to Amy."

"I know. All right. But I'm waiting outside for you, just in case."

"Fine."

Amy felt her father and Duncan very close now. And she knew that Richie was  
going to come in, sword in hand...

In her mind, Amy saw the fight. Richie coming in, Hoskins (the other  
Immortal's name - she knew all their names) attacking from the side...  
Lunges, parries, and then... a beheading. And Hoskins walking away.

No! That was not going to happen! She was not going to let this man kill her  
father, one of the two people who had given her life, her father whom she now  
knew she loved. No way. Amy looked around. This Immortal had tied her hands,   
but she wasn't going to let that stop her. She began to twist her hands, to try to   
get the bonds loose. They wouldn't come loose.

Amy twisted harder, feeling her skin tearing as she finally got one hand out  
of the ties. She was bleeding, but she'd worry about that later. Hoskins was  
standing at the window, looking down. Amy realised that he'd just felt the  
buzz, and knew that Richie was on his way. Amy looked to the counter at the  
other end of the room. Hoskins' gun was on it. The man still had his sword,  
but a gun could slow him down... if she got to it, grabbed it and shot him  
in one smooth flow. There was no choice.

Amy got up and ran to the counter, grabbing the gun. Her blood made her  
hands slippery, and it dropped to the floor. Hoskins advanced on her. "Don't  
be foolish, little Ms Ryan. You know that won't help."

Amy, no longer caring what he called her, grabbed the gun off the floor and  
aimed it. Hoskins continued to advance. "You know you can't kill me with  
that."

"I know," said Amy, and fired. And fired again. It was the first time she'd  
used a gun, but the two shots hit home: straight through the heart. Hoskins  
dropped to the floor, appearing to die. Amy ran forward, pulled away his  
overcoat, and grabbed his broadsword. What was she becoming, she wondered  
as she raised it above his head.

Richie rushed in, to see his child holding the sword above Hoskins' head.  
"Amy! No!" He knew why he said that: he didn't want Amy to have someone's  
blood on her hands. He didn't want his daughter to have anything to do with  
the Game.

But Amy just looked at him, saying nothing, and then brought the sword down,  
slicing Hoskins' head from his body.

Richie couldn't believe what he'd just seen. Would there be a Quickening,  
now? A mortal had killed Hoskins. Maybe he'd get it... Richie waited, as Amy  
dropped the sword on the floor and faced him with a determined expression.  
And sparks began rising from the body.

White light enveloped Amy, and the minature lightning bolts struck her and  
she stood there, looking too serene for someone who had just decapitated  
another person. But the Quickening's power overtook Amy, and she screamed...  
and screamed, as the Immortal's knowledge and power went into her.

Finally, it was over. Richie rushed forward to grab her before she fell. As  
he did so, Duncan banged open the door, katana shining in the light. The  
Highlander stopped short. What had happened here?

Richie sat Amy down. "You didn't have to."

Amy put her arms around Richie as if she never wanted to let go. "Yes, I  
did... Dad." She said it with a certain defiance. He *was* her father. "I  
had to do it. I saw the battle... you lost. I wasn't going to let that  
happen to you."

Duncan could hardly believe it. He stood in front of Amy. "You killed him?"

"Yeah."

"And she got the Quickening, Mac," added Richie. They paused, thinking about  
this. Finally Duncan spoke. "You're not Immortal," he said to Amy. "I'd feel  
it if you were."

"No, I'm not." Amy stared down at her wrists. They were still bleeding. "I'm  
not Immortal. I'm something else. And like it or not, I am going to be  
involved in the Game. I no longer have any choice."

When they got back to Richie's place, Diana had long since left. Richie felt  
a pang of remorse, but he pushed it out of his mind. He could deal with that  
later. Right now, they had other things to think about: such as the fact  
that his daughter *could*, and *had*, influenced the Game.

Amy sat still while Duncan bandaged her wrists. She knew that the two  
Immortals were too stunned to say anything, but she could feel their  
thoughts. They were both thinking the same thing: Amy would be the one to  
choose. She could not only 'see' who'd win fights, she could change the  
outcomes. She could enter the fights almost with impunity, since no Immortal  
\- save her father - could feel her. And since she wasn't Immortal, the Rules  
didn't apply to her.

"I must have been born for a reason," Amy said, looking up at Duncan.

Duncan looked away, frightened of the intensity in her eyes, frightened of  
the things it made him feel. She was young and fragile-looking, but she had  
a core of steel. He felt himself drawn to her, as he always had. Finally he  
simply replied, "We don't know. No one knows."

"What about Methos?" asked Richie.

"I don't know where he is."

Amy finally managed to look away from Duncan to her father. "I do."

"Where?"

"He's here."

"Here? In the U.S.?"

"Here in this city. They're converging on it."

"They?"

"All the Immortals. And you know why?"

"Why?" Duncan asked.

"I'm it. My birth sped up the Gathering. Maybe my birth even started the  
final phase of the Gathering. It doesn't matter now, anyway. And I *feel*...   
that I won't die before seeing the One who is left, before..." She stopped.   
Before what, she didn't know. But she had something to do, right at the end.

"Where's Methos?"

Amy got up. "I'll take you to him. Let's go."

As they drove across town, Richie kept sneaking glances at his daughter. She  
was so strong, he felt she could survive anything. Her mother... Kathryn had  
been strong, but not in the same way. All Kathryn had wanted was a normal  
life. But she had had her part to fulfill in Destiny, and so did the  
daughter she had borne. And sometimes Destiny could be very cruel.

"Aren't you angry?" Richie asked suddenly.

Amy shook her head. "Angry at my role in all this? No. I always felt... that  
I had something to do. Now that I know what it is, I feel relieved. And I'll  
do it to the best of my ability... to the point of seeing that there can be  
only one." She didn't tell him her feeling that there was more to it, a lot  
more. And she couldn't tell him that it was Duncan she saw intertwined in  
that destiny. Not as the One, but as something else...

"Only one..." mused her father.

"You realise, Dad..." trailed off Amy, "the One might not be you." She had  
almost said, "The One will not be you," but she stopped herself. If she  
could choose, she would choose him, and yet something told her she was to  
*know*, not choose. And somehow... she knew who it wouldn't be. It wouldn't  
be her father.

Richie nodded, put his arms around Amy and hugged her. "I know. It doesn't  
matter. It's the Game."

***

Methos stared at the three of them; stunned. "You know it all? Everything?"

"No. All I know is what I discovered about myself. I'm mortal, but when I  
kill an Immortal, I get the Quickening. And that gives me... insight... into  
events. I know all the Rules, but they don't apply to me. I was *born* to  
see this. Me."

Methos simply looked at the other two Immortals. "You never told me."

"What was there to tell?" Duncan asked. "Kathryn had Amy, died, and Richie  
gave Amy away to protect her."

Methos shook his head. "There... You asked me once, if I'd made any sense of  
it. I haven't. But I know *how* we know."

"How?"

"About... four and a half thousand years ago, give or take a century or two,  
I met a seer. That's what we called them, then. Today she'd probably be  
calling herself a psychic and having her own talk show. She told me - as she  
told every Immortal she met - what the Game was. The Rules. Everything."

"And you just took her word for it?" Richie was incredulous.

"No. She knew about Immortals. She didn't know how, but everything she said  
came true. She passed on a prophecy... about a woman who would be born...  
let me try and get the words correct... 'In an underground conveyance, at  
the time of the Gathering', who would..."

"Preserve the Immortal seed," said Duncan.

"Exactly. And that would signal the end for us. For Immortals."

"What do you mean, the end?"

"There can be only one. That end. That's what she told me. The implication  
was... that the Immortal seed - Amy, in other words - would end it."

"How?" asked Richie. "By choosing the winner?"

"Maybe. But the 'Immortal seed' would be wise, and her choice would involve  
action."

"Why don't all Immortals know about this?"

"Why do you think?" asked Methos.

Duncan and Richie looked at each other. They knew why: to save lives. Mortal  
lives. Amy looked from her father to Duncan. "WHY?" she finally asked.

Methos answered her. "To save the lives of mortals, mortal women. Thousands of   
years ago, every woman born in unusual circumstance was sought out by Immortals   
wanting to preserve their seed. Every child born to a woman who might have been   
with an Immortal was watched, and sometimes killed. Those of us alive at the time  
decided to keep the prophecy quiet. It was necessary to save lives. We knew the real   
person would be born someday; all we had to do was wait long enough."

"And now I'm here," said Amy.

"Now you're here."

The Immortals looked at each other; they couldn't think of anything further to say.

Back at Richie's apartment, Amy paced. "I could kill every one of them,  
until only one remains."

"That wouldn't be fair," Duncan told her.

"I know." Amy didn't mention that she felt something more. Something she had  
yet to see. "What am I going to do?"

"You have to learn to protect yourself," said Richie. He looked over at his  
mentor; Duncan looked away. "No," he said.

"Mac, please!"

"That would be giving consent to this. It's only fair if the Immortals fight  
it out. We can't allow interference."

"I was BORN to interfere!" shouted Amy.

"We don't know that!"

"Yes, we do! Methos said as much! And I'm not going to just sit here and  
wait, Duncan. I have to do something. Please."

Duncan sagged; finally nodding. "All right. Meet me tomorrow at the gym and  
I'll teach you."

"Okay."

"Thanks, Mac," said Richie.

Duncan said nothing else as he left.

Richie turned to Amy. "Get some sleep."

"Do you think sleep will help?"

"No, but it will let you rest. You need rest."

Amy put her arms around her father. "I never had a life before I met you.  
Never."

"Amy..."

"I'm not my mother! I'm not going to die! I'm going to finish this! Whatever  
it takes, I have to."

***Part 5***

"Let's try that one again," Duncan told Amy. "Smoothly, this time." He  
stepped back to give Amy room to practice the swing, looking at her as he  
did so.

Whenever Duncan looked at Amy - even in passing - he was always affected in  
some way. He sometimes felt jealous - jealous that Richie had gotten the  
life that he, Duncan, would have done anything for. Sometimes he felt sad,  
remembering Kathryn, who had died to protect her child. Proud, sometimes.  
Proud of her achievements. Nostalgic - she did look like both her parents.  
And many other things. And lately, there had been those other feelings...

Duncan shook his head and focused, to find Amy staring at him. "Why do you  
keep looking at me like that?"

"Sorry." He resumed fighting stance, but Amy ignored that.

"Duncan, I asked you a question."

"I was just... thinking. About you, your mother, your father... everything."

Amy put the sword down. "Don't lie to me, Duncan. Not to me, when you know I  
can tell what you're thinking."

"Really, I..."

"Maybe consciously, but I could feel other things."

Duncan shrugged and lowered his katana. "Okay, so tell me."

"You're attracted to me."

The highlander laughed - a short, dismissive grunt. "What makes you say that?"

"It's there, in the back of your mind. And you keep finding excuses to leave  
it there, instead of admitting it."

"I think today's lesson is over," said Duncan, turning his back and walking  
towards his gear.

Amy ran up and faced him. "I'm not Tessa, or Anne, or any of the others. I  
won't die, and I won't leave you."

"You're still mortal, and you could still be killed."

"I know. But I'm in this, and you're the only person I've ever had these  
feelings for."

Duncan stepped past her and began putting his things into his bag. "Amy,  
leave it alone. Please."

"For now." Amy turned and sauntered out of the gym, leaving Duncan to stare  
after her.

***

Amy was driving back to Richie's place when she felt... a Quickening had  
just been released. She hadn't been concentrating on the Game recently, and  
hadn't paid attention to who was still around. But that had been Methos. He  
had just killed... the other Immortal's name was Henry Francis. Neither  
Duncan nor Richie had ever mentioned him. He'd been an Immortal for... it  
felt like about eighty years. He'd lived mostly in Australia and New Zealand,  
so Duncan had most likely never run across him.

Amy reached out with her mind, counting Immortals. Twenty-two left. She  
tried to see more than that... but nothing would come. There was something  
wrong. The Game... as it sped up, Amy felt even more strongly that there was  
something about it that no one knew... Something she *had* to know, *had* to  
find out, before there was only one.

She'd been meaning to go home and rest, but now she changed her mind. A  
great sadness welled up inside her when she felt again that her father was  
not going to be the last one. She wasn't sure about Duncan, either, and that  
scared her too. If he died... if someone else won the Prize... she would  
have nothing. No memories, no anything. She had to find her father and get  
him to agree. Because she wasn't going without love, not now that she'd  
found the one person really worth loving.

"So, how'd training go?" asked Richie when Amy showed up at his bike shop.

"The training's going great." 

But her voice told a different story, and Richie turned. "What?"

Amy didn't want to tell Richie about Duncan, but she knew she had to. Still,  
she put it off. "Methos just killed someone."

"Who?" her father asked, but Amy just shook her head. When she did that it  
meant that the Immortal was unknown to him. So instead he asked, "How many  
are left now?" But Richie knew she wouldn't tell him this, either. He could  
see that there was something going on in his daughter's head now, and she  
wasn't telling anyone.

"Enough. There are still enough left."

Richie saw that wasn't the entire problem, either. "Then it's gotta be  
something else that's bothering you."

Amy smiled. "When I was growing up, I'd often look at my parents and think,  
'They don't understand me.' But you do. We're locked together in a way I'll  
never understand. I'm mortal, but immortality surrounds me. It's in me,  
through the Quickening. And I understand Immortals, and you understand me."

"So what is it?"

"Duncan. He wants me."

For a minute Richie wasn't sure he had heard correctly, but Amy just stood  
there, finally continuing. "I can feel it in his mind, but he pushes it away.  
He's scared I'll die."

"Any Immortal can use you as a pawn, especially now. Especially since you're  
my daughter. And if you and Duncan..." Richie tried to be outraged, but it was   
difficult. He had always hoped that Duncan would find someone, someone special,   
whom he could love. There was no one more special than Amy, but still... He tried   
to continue. "Other Immortals will have two reasons to use you, instead of one."

Amy shook her head very slightly. "I know all the arguments, Dad. Is it so  
much to ask, that someone love me? That I have someone, before all this is  
over?"

"You're saying you love Mac, too." It was more a statement than a question.

"Of course I love him! I think I always did. I think I was supposed to."

Richie finally lost his temper. "All we've been going on for months is  
suppositions. Maybe you get to choose. Maybe it was meant to be. Maybe you  
were supposed to fall in love with Duncan. Maybe, Amy! Only maybe!"

"To you it's maybe, Dad!" Amy had decided that she was going to call Richie  
what she had always wanted to. And he didn't object. And since her kidnapper  
had called her Ms Ryan, she had called herself that. It felt good. "To you it's   
maybe, because you aren't *in* here! You can't see what I can see, and you   
can't know what I know!" She started to cry.

Richie pulled her into his embrace. "You know more than you're telling,  
don't you? About me. About Duncan."

Amy nodded, her tears staining his shirt. "I don't think either of you is  
going to be the One. I get to choose, but it isn't such a simple choice. The  
last two... there is something... but I don't see you or Duncan there!"

"You could be wrong," said Richie. Her ideas about why she was there kept  
changing, as she saw more and more. As more Immortals fell to the Game.

"I hope I'm wrong. I don't want either of you to die!"

"I understand," Richie suddenly said. "And you want to keep us with you, now,  
in case we're gone forever."

"Yes."

"Well, then I guess Mac doesn't stand a chance." He held her away from him  
and wiped her tears away.

"What must I do, then?"

"Go over to his place and shout at him. Sometimes it's the only thing that  
works."

Richie watched his daughter leave. "There can be only one," he muttered. "I  
never thought it would be me."

***

Duncan was sitting brooding when a knock sounded. He knew it would be Amy,  
and it was. "I don't want to talk about this."

Amy squared her shoulders. "I don't care. I've seen, and I don't think the  
last one will be you." As she said it, Amy wondered how she could be so calm.  
She knew that two men she loved more than anything were not going to survive.  
But she knew her calmness came from determination: she was going to give  
them all the love she could now, while she was still able to.

Duncan didn't look her in the eye. He didn't believe she knew for certain  
who would be last, but it also didn't matter, because he had lived a long  
time, and would fight evil to the end. Still, there was no reason to put  
Amy's life in danger. "That doesn't matter," he said. "I'm not going to put  
your life at risk."

"Why, because you love me?"

Duncan threw up his hands. "Of course I love you! I've loved you since..."  
He had to be honest with her. And himself. "I've loved you since before you  
were born. I can't let you put yourself in danger."

"I've been in danger since before I was born. Do you think my father didn't  
tell me? My mother had to have people with her, to protect her. I've lived  
in danger since I walked into that workshop and met my father. And I *know*,  
Duncan, that I won't die. Please trust that."

"I can't," Duncan responded, his voice cracking.

"Why? Even for a little while, love is worth it."

Duncan turned away, but she grabbed him by the arms. "No! I'm not going to  
let you turn away, not this time. I've had a crush on you since I was young.  
I knew there was something special about you. I knew I would be yours  
someday." She dropped her hands, sighing. "I didn't think I'd have to  
practically wrestle you to the ground."

And as she said that, MacLeod knew she wasn't going to go away, or give up.  
And he saw that she *wasn't* scared, that she had seen herself survive. And  
that was all he needed: to know she would live, to know that he wouldn't be  
responsible for her death. He closed his eyes and sighed, all his resistance  
draining away. Then he traced her cheek with a finger. "Just don't die on  
me."

"Not till this is over, I promise."

Duncan lifted her up, then, and carried her into the bedroom. "Your father  
is going to kill me."

Amy laughed into his shoulder. "My father told me to come over here."

"Really?"

"Yeah. I think the idea makes him uncomfortable, but he understands my  
reasons... and he cares about you. He knows I'll make you happy."

They reached the bed and Duncan put her down, gently. "Amy, I know we're in  
a new millennium and all that, but you seem... Have you..." Even for someone  
as old as he was, some things could be difficult. Especially with someone  
you had been used to thinking of as a child, the child of your best friend.  
"I mean, you have... right?"

Amy smiled - a very enigmatic smile. "Why don't you come here and find out."

So he did.

***

Amy started awake. She knew that feeling by now. Somewhere in the city a  
Quickening was being released. Connor MacLeod had just killed someone. And  
earlier... someone else had died, too. Twenty left... and counting. Amy got  
a strong mental image of herself, standing... it was somewhere dank and  
dark... facing the one who was left. "What? What is it?" Duncan asked,  
jumping up, sword already in hand, and the image in Amy's mind faded.

'I almost had it!' thought Amy. 'I almost knew the answer!' But it was gone  
now. "Nothing. Go back to sleep."

"It's too late, I'm awake now." He gathered her into his arms. It was a  
strange feeling. He remembered Kathryn having to wrestle Amy away from him  
when she had been a baby. He had cared for her so much. "I can't believe  
it," he smiled.

"What?"

"That I'm here, with you. You're much bigger than the last time I held you,  
you know." They both laughed. "I was there when you were born. I was the  
third person to hold you. I fed you, I bathed you, I changed your diapers,  
I... I burped you, and took you for walks, and..."

"Surely that's not what this outburst is about," she smiled.

It wasn't. "You didn't tell me," said Duncan. "You just..."

"Duncan, I cannot possibly be the first girl you've... what did they once call  
it... deflowered. Not in 420 years."

"No, but... You're Richie's daughter," he said, as if that explained it. How  
was he going to face Richie now, knowing what he did, what he'd done?

"Duncan, all my life I knew I was different. Everyone around me - except you  
\- was ordinary. I wasn't going to be ordinary. Not when it came to sex, not  
when it came to anything." She laughed. "My parents thought I was such a  
good girl, when all I was doing was... waiting. For you."

"Seems to me we're still waiting."

"Yeah. For the inevitable." And as she said it, the image came. And the  
answer came. Amy felt her insides lurch. 'No! It can't possibly be!' But it  
was, and she had to hide it. There was no way she could tell anyone - not  
anyone - about this. She turned away from Duncan, afraid that he'd see the  
knowledge in her eyes: she knew what they were waiting for. It was the only  
possible answer.

"What is it?" MacLeod asked. "You just..."

"A Quickening," Amy improvised. "Your clansman just did away with someone."  
Better a half-truth than a flat-out lie. The inevitable was much closer than  
she wanted it. "Duncan, hold me, please. Don't let go."

***

Richie came over the next day to see what was what. He and Duncan had fallen  
into a routine of hanging around one another, even though there was no  
longer any reason to. That was friendship. He found Duncan giving Amy  
another lesson in swordsmanship. "Hey."

"Hey, Rich," Duncan began... then remembered. He stopped, but Richie just  
continued.

"So, how's it going?"

"Things are great," replied Amy. "Really." She went over and put her arms  
around Duncan, who looked startled and unsure if he should return the hug or  
try to get loose.

At one time Richie would have been amused at the look on his friend's face.  
Now, though... That was his daughter. And yet... she did look happy. And he,  
too, remembered Duncan when Amy had been a baby. "Mac... it looks like if I  
want my daughter I'm still going to have to pry her away from you."

Duncan grinned, something he rarely did. "I guess nothing's changed, then."

"I guess not." Richie saw they were both fine. He knew Duncan was slightly  
uncomfortable - as was he - but he was happy about this. "Well, just came to  
say hi. See you both later."

"Where are you off to?" asked Amy.

"To find Diana." Richie knew that Amy was right: if you had someone, love  
them now, before all this was finally over.

***Part 6***

It was two weeks - and many sword lessons later - that Amy felt that sense  
of finality envelop her. Nine Immortals and counting. She had long ago  
decided that she wasn't going to stay around to see either her father or  
Duncan lose their heads. She knew they would understand.

So when she walked into her father's house to say goodbye, he understood.  
"Soon, now," she said.

Richie had been trying to have a quiet evening with Diana, but it wasn't  
working out. Diana naturally didn't believe that Richie wasn't interested in  
Amy, and having her around all the time had alienated the model. So, when  
Amy arrived, Diana understandably got mad. "I've had it, Richie! You cannot  
string me along like this!"

"Wait," said Amy, in a quiet yet determined voice. "It won't matter soon,  
anyway. I'm his daughter."

"Yeah. Right." Diana was in no mood for games.

"Listen to me very carefully. Richie is an Immortal. They live forever. They  
stay looking the same for all that time. I'm not his girlfriend, I'm his  
daughter."

Diana looked at Richie, expecting him to try some other, more reasonable  
explanation for these events. But all he did was nod. And then he turned to  
Amy. "What do you mean, soon?"

"There are nine left. Only nine, Dad. I expect that within four days there  
will be only two. And then one."

"Who?" he asked.

"I still don't know. But I do know you took a head two days ago. Didn't tell  
me. Didn't tell Duncan. You just did it, and carried on."

"The Game is out of control."

"It was never IN control. At least not yours. In mine, maybe."

"You do know who will win." Richie could feel it in her. She did know.

"It isn't who'll win. It's..." How could she explain an insight she had only  
recently gotten? "I know why I'm here. And it's for more than choosing the  
winner."

"What, Amy?"

"I CAN'T TELL YOU!" she cried. "I... You're not to know. No one is to know,  
only the last one."

"All right." Richie looked at Diana, knowing he had a lot of explaining to  
do. "I'll take you home," he said. "Would you wait in the car?"

"Yeah," responded his girlfriend.

"You're leaving now, aren't you?" he asked.

"Yeah. I said my goodbyes to Duncan already." It was only now that the tears  
started falling. "I'll never see either of you again. Never. But... you will  
both live on, in me." She wished she could say more, but the knowledge was  
only for her, not them.

Richie opened his arms. "I love you," he said. "Always remember that. I  
loved your mother, and I love you. And I'm not sorry about any of it."

"Nor am I. I love you, too."

They hugged then; father and daughter, finally disengaging themselves, and  
Richie walked away, not looking back.

Amy collapsed in a chair. "Why me?" she asked the ceiling. She didn't expect  
an answer. There was still a lot to do.

When Richie arrived home, she was gone. The pain was almost more than he  
could bear, and he wasn't sure if it was her pain, or his. It just had to be  
like this.

And as he had always done when he needed help, or moral support, or anything  
in fact, Richie went over to Duncan's.

He found Duncan staring vacantly at the wall. "Mac?"

"Hey, Richie."

"She left."

"I know. Strange, isn't it? They always died, and now I'll be the one to die."

"Mac - "

"Save it, Rich. We both know she's right. She wouldn't have left if she thought   
one of us would win. And she knows she can't choose between us. So she's   
letting the Game decide for her."

"There's something else, Mac. She knows something we don't."

"I know. But we don't get to find out."

The two Immortals stared at each other over the coffee table. "I have some  
really old brandy," said Duncan.

"Let's drink it, then. Better if we have it than someone who won't  
appreciate it." Richie got up to fetch the brandy and glasses.

"Rich?"

"Yeah?"

"I'm glad you're here."

"Me too."

It was a long night. And now that Amy wasn't here, and both of them would  
soon be gone, they talked about it. About everything.

"So, you really do love her?" Richie asked.

"Yeah. I always did. It seemed... as if she was made to be with me. We... I  
felt whole when I was with her. I hadn't felt like that since..."

"I know." Richie did truly know. Tessa. So long ago, and yet Duncan had  
never truly gotten over it.

They sat together in silence for a while. "Mac?"

"Yeah?"

"Why did you take me in, all those years ago? It wasn't to keep me from  
talking, I know that."

"I sensed you, in the antique store. Afterwards I thought maybe I'd confused  
you with Connor or Slan, but when I met you again at the police station, I  
knew. And I knew that you needed guidance, that with the right guidance you  
would turn out great. And you did."

"You sound like my father," said Richie, but there was no hint of mirth in  
his tone.

Duncan swallowed hard. "I felt like your father for a long time. I had someone   
to pass my knowledge on to, someone who I thought would outlive me, or at   
least... pass on what I'd taught him. I didn't think we'd be sitting here over   
twenty years later discussing the end of it all."

"Well, I didn't think you'd fall in love with my daughter."

MacLeod turned and looked at Richie. "I guess not."

They lapsed into silence again. Then, "Mac?"

"Yeah?"

"I'd better say this now, or I never will. I appreciate everything you did  
for me. I... I love you, I guess."

"I know. I love you, too, Rich. For so many years you were my only 'family'.  
I needed that."

Richie downed the last of the brandy. "I'm gonna pass out soon. I just wanna  
say... it's been fun."

"Yeah. It has," agreed Duncan.

Neither Duncan nor Richie were the last two, as Amy had known. Duncan was  
challenged by an Immortal almost two thousand years older than him, and lost.

***

Amy was thousands of miles away, in New York, when it happened, but she felt  
it. Pain. And a great sense of loss. "Duncan!" she cried, collapsing to the  
floor.

"Quick! Help me with her!" The other patrons of the gallery she'd been in  
helped her to a seat, gave her water, and expressed concern. But Amy just  
looked around bleakly, mumbling that she was fine.

A man in his mid-thirties came and sat next to her. "Are you sure you're  
okay?"

Amy looked at him intensely. There was something... she felt as if he knew  
her, had been waiting to talk to her. "Who are you?"

"I'm... a friend."

"A Watcher, you mean."

"Well, yeah."

"Why are you watching me?"

"You're Richie Ryan's daughter, aren't you?"

Amy was about to ask how he knew that, but it was pretty obvious. "I'm not  
Immortal," she said.

"No, but you killed the guy who kidnapped you back home."

"I had to. He was going to kill my father."

"So the legends are true."

Amy looked away. "Yeah."

"What IS wrong?"

"Duncan... Duncan is gone." She started crying.

The Watcher didn't know what else to do. He put his arms around her and  
comforted her.

When Richie discovered what had happened to Duncan, he had gone after the  
guy. And killed him, due more to luck than knowledge of swordsmanship.  
Richie Ryan had always been exceedingly lucky when it came to Immortality.

Amy knew about it the minute Richie's sword severed his opponent's head.

She had become friends with her Watcher, even though it was technically  
against the rules. They were having coffee and talking about Immortals,  
legends, prophecies... Amy suddenly sat up, looking vacantly ahead.

"What is it?"

"My father. He... he just killed someone. She clasped her arms around  
herself. "Soon," she whispered, and the Watcher knew she wasn't talking to  
him.

"Do you want me to go?"

Amy shook her head. "No. Tonight there will be three more who lose their  
heads. My father... I don't know who, but he loses his, too. I don't think I  
want to be alone when that happens."

Richie, engaged in his second fight to the death of the evening, suddenly  
knew that he wasn't going to win. He could feel Amy's certainty, and her  
sadness. As he lunged, parried, fought against not only his opponent, but  
the knowledge of his own death, Richie looked at his life and thought that  
he should probably have some regrets, but he didn't. Perhaps his only one  
was not having told Diana sooner, so they could have had some time. But that  
was all. His daughter would live on, and that was enough. That was  
immortality enough.

***

Three days later Amy's Watcher was woken at three in the morning. "Amy?"

"Hi. Sorry to wake you. I have to go back."

"What do you..." He trailed off. "There are only two."

Amy nodded, wrapping her arms around herself again. The Watcher knew there  
was a reason for that, but he didn't ask.

"I'm really scared."

"Don't go back, then."

"I have no choice."

"Why? Why do you keep saying that?"

"It isn't for you to know. It isn't for anyone to know."

"I'm not just anyone."

"I know. You're a Watcher. You'll know soon enough. But right now, I have to  
go back. The day after tomorrow, there will be only one, and I have to be there."

"Why?"

"That isn't imp..." She stopped. "That's a lie. It's very, very important.  
But my reasons are reasons that have been prophesied, talked about, fought  
over, for thousands of years."

"The Immortal seed. But you're it. What..."

"It isn't me, not completely. Something else has to be done. I know it, I  
feel it. But I'm not going to tell you."

The Watcher knew he wouldn't be able to talk her out of it.  
"Then I'm coming with you."

"No. Not this time. When it's over, you'll know. Goodbye." Amy walked out  
the door, and for the first time ever, her Watcher was not following.

***

Amy arrived back in Washington State in time to find both Duncan and  
Richie's places being packed up. Diana was there, crying. "The will says you  
get everything - except the house. Duncan left you everything of his, too.  
Including the T-bird."

Amy smiled, a tight, sad smile. "They were both hopeless romantics. The T-  
bird... I don't know how he kept it running all those years."

"What are you going to do now?" Diana asked. "Run the bike shop? Sell  
antiques?"

Amy shook her head. "No. I have to do what I was born to do. Where's his  
sword?"

"Who?"

"My father."

Diana looked at her with a dying flash of skepticism. "It was all true,  
wasn't it? You really are his daughter."

"Yes. Can I have his sword?"

"What about Duncan's?"

"I'll keep that. But... I need my father's for what I'm going to do next."

Diana went over to a packing crate and took it out. "Here. The police let me  
have it, after... you know." Amy took hold of it, gently, whispering to it,  
"There can be only one."

She turned for the door, but Diana's voice stopped her. "Where are you  
going?"

"I told you. To do what I have to do." Amy walked out. The last two  
Immortals were facing off even as she drove towards them.

***

The last Immortal sliced his opponent's head from his body and received the  
Quickening just as Amy arrived. But when it was over... Nothing. What was  
the Prize? Why wasn't there some awesome knowledge and power?

"It isn't you," said Amy, walking towards him, her father's sword raised.

"What are you talking about?"

"It isn't you. You're not the One."

"I'm the last Immortal."

"I know, but you're not the One."

The Immortal looked puzzled. Here, facing him was a girl with strawberry  
blonde hair, green eyes and slight build, holding a sword and almost...   
threatening him. "You're not Immortal," he said.

"No, I'm not," said Amy. "But it isn't me, either."

The Immortal raised his sword. He'd kill her, and then maybe he'd get his  
due. "Then who?" he asked, just in case.

"That doesn't matter to you," said Amy, attacking.

Despite her youth and inexperience, Amy had one thing her opponent didn't  
have: she had Destiny on her side. She knew... she could *see* every move her  
opponent was going to make before he made it. It was still a struggle, to keep  
up with what she was seeing, but Duncan had given her the skills that pushed  
her just enough to be able to do it.

Even as he attacked, parried, defended, her Immortal opponent could feel that  
there was something different about her that gave her the ability to defeat him.   
And she did. 

This time the Quickening was more intense. All the power of all the Immortals   
who had ever lived was concentrated in this one mortal girl... who didn't cry out   
this time, but fell in a heap when it was over.

Amy wished her father and Duncan could have seen this. Their faces would  
have been a picture. But they were gone, and so was every vestige of  
Immortality that had been on the planet, bar...

"You," said Amy, putting her palm to her abdomen, covering Duncan's child.  
"You're the One. The only one."

Then Amy Palmer Ryan picked up her father's sword and walked away, taking  
herself and her child into a future that even she could not predict.

THE END

**Author's Note:**

> The song lyrics quoted at the beginning are from "The Girl with the Weight of the World in Her Hands" by Emily Saliers.


End file.
